Actress Hayden Panettiere‘s death has been ruled an accidental overdose from drugs, including fentanyl, according to the Greenville County Coroner’s Office in South Carolina.
The coroner’s office said the other four drugs in her system were: 4-ANPP, a man-made byproduct of making fentanyl; alprazolam, known as Xanax, which commonly treats anxiety and panic disorders; methocarbamol, known as Robaxin, which treats muscle spasms and related injuries; and quetiapine, known as Seroquel, an antipsychotic medication used to treat mental health conditions that can also help with sleep.
Of the combination of medications, fentanyl is the most likely to result in an overdose death.
Her autopsy found “no signs of trauma … that would have contributed to the death,” the coroner’s office said.
The 36-year-old Nashville star died in August after she was found unresponsive at an apartment in Greenville.
Panettiere’s mother, Lesley Vogel, said in a statement on Tuesday, “Hayden was a fighter. … She was transparent with her addictions and her numerous rehab attempts show her resolve to live a healthy life.”
Vogel said her daughter’s death being ruled an accidental overdose doesn’t “exonerate the supplier of this lethal dose.”
“The loss of Hayden is palpable; grief permeates the soul and it will live with those who loved her forever. … Everything moving forward will be healing but the mission is and will always be justice for Hayden,” she said.
The Drug Enforcement Administration is investigating if the fentanyl came from South Carolina or if the actress may have brought it with her from California, sources told ABC News. Panettiere flew from Los Angeles to South Carolina the day before her death, sources said.
Panettiere was honored over the weekend at a memorial service in California, her representative confirmed to ABC News. Panettiere’s Nashville co-star Connie Britton and other celebrities, including Evan Ross and Ruby Rose, were photographed attending the memorial.
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
